Got Chat GPT’s new voice mode? Here's how to check — and 5 things you should try first | Tech Radar

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Got Chat GPT’s new voice mode? Here's how to check — and 5 things you should try first

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It can both talk and listen at the same time for more natural chats

Chat GPT has a shiny new AI voice model called GPT-Live, which has a number of helpful tricks — including being able to listen and talk at the same time. It's rolling out to all Chat GPT users now, though Open AI has acknowledged a number of early bugs.

While free users and users on a paid plan do get slightly different models — GPT-Live-1 mini and GPT-Live-1 respectively — the updated model should now be appearing in all Chat GPT accounts, with the new features outlined below.

The biggest giveaway that you've got the upgrade will be the Live label at the top of voice chats on mobile, and behind the Chat GPT drop-down on the web. Tap or click on these labels and you can still go back to the old voice models, for the time being.

There's another way to check the GPT-Live voice model has arrived in your account: on mobile, tap the menu button (top left), then the settings cog (Android) or your profile avatar (i OS), and Voice > Model. On the web, click your profile avatar (bottom left), then Settings > Voice > Model.

The new voice mode in action (Image credit: Future)

The biggest upgrade here is the 'duplex' functionality, so try that first: you can keep talking even after Chat GPT has started answering you, and it should keep up. Second, try interrupting it mid-flow, and it'll adapt its response accordingly. We're almost at the level of the 2013 Spike Jonze movie Her at this stage.

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Third, ask Chat GPT in voice mode to translate something into a foreign language as you say it out loud. You can then speak out sentences in English, and Chat GPT will do a real time translation for you without hesitating. It's not particularly useful for language learning, but it does show off the capabilities of GPT-Live.

Fourth, change the voice and intelligence used — you can do this via the sliders icon at the top right of voice chats. The voice options are actually the same as they were before, but you can choose between Instant, Medium, and High as the intelligence level. Use Instant for the fastest answers, High for the best answers, and Medium for a compromise.

The final thing you can try once you've got the update is to ask questions with visual answers. Open AI has added a bunch of visual cards to voice mode now, so you get graphics on screen about sports scores, weather forecasts, and places that can be found on a map, for example.

We are aware of issues with memory not being as reliable in Chat GPT Voice with GPT-Live. We’re actively investigating and will follow up! July 9, 2026

We are aware of issues with memory not being as reliable in Chat GPT Voice with GPT-Live. We’re actively investigating and will follow up! July 9, 2026

I've been testing out GPT-Live voice mode for a few hours and can report that everything works as advertised. It is, more than ever, like talking to a real person — right down to the hesitations and the variety in speech patterns. I did experience one or two glitches, but they were few and far between.

Over on Reddit, Open AI's Atty Eleti is answering questions about GPT-Live. One of the main bugs that users seem to be experiencing is related to Chat GPT's memory, which appears to be off limits to voice mode in some cases — this is an issue that Open AI is tracking and "actively investigating", and you can find updates on it here.

Problems are also being reported when it comes to foreign languages being pronounced in an English accent. Again, this is an issue that's been acknowledged, and which should improve over time according to Eleti.

Overall though, the rollout seems to be going relatively smoothly — and I haven't seen any issues with memory or with accents so far. I'm not sure it's going to make me want to use voice mode any more than I already do (which isn't much), but for heavy voice users it's definitely a big step forward.

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Dave is a freelance tech journalist who has been writing about gadgets, apps and the web for more than two decades. Based out of Stockport, England, on Tech Radar you'll find him covering news, features and reviews, particularly for phones, tablets and wearables. Working to ensure our breaking news coverage is the best in the business over weekends, David also has bylines at Gizmodo, T3, Pop Sci and a few other places besides, as well as being many years editing the likes of PC Explorer and The Hardware Handbook.

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